Social Media: Fans and followers are an end, not a means
1. Millward Brown: Point of View
Social Media: Fans and Followers
Are an End, Not a Means
The last few years have seen some massive changes in our world. The financial bubble
that reached its peak in 2007 popped, leaving us to enjoy what has been dubbed
“The Great Recession.” The Dow Jones plummeted, along with consumer confidence.
The subsequent road to recovery has proved to be long and uncertain.
But not everything declined. In the realm of social media, the number of Facebook users
grew dramatically, blog readership increased, and a new phenomenon called Twitter
exploded onto the scene.
It’s enough to make you think that using social media is the latest and best way to
effectively build your brand. Many pundits suggest as much, and many brands seem to
Nigel Hollis be buying into the idea. Research conducted in 2010 by Millward Brown and Dynamic
Chief Global Analyst Logic, in cooperation with the World Federation of Advertisers, found that almost all
Millward Brown
nigel.hollis@millwardbrown.com marketers surveyed (96 percent) expected to invest more time and money in social
www.mb-blog.com media in 201 However, only a quarter (23 percent) said they were confident about the
1.
returns they get on these investments.
I think this uncertainty is warranted. Those who manage brands should look before they
leap. I believe that the race to utilize social media channels is representative of the same
sort of irrational exuberance that led the stock market to unprecedented heights and
allowed people to have faith in incomprehensible financial instruments. For many brands,
large-scale investment in social media campaigns is likely to prove just as ill-advised and
imprudent. In other words, I think we may be witnessing a social media bubble.
The Power of Social Media
There can be no denying that social media can be an incredible vehicle for change.
For example, in 2009, a Facebook campaign prevented X Factor winner Joe McElderry
from doing something the previous four X Factor winners had done—reach the top of
the UK music charts. The campaign was started by husband-and-wife team Jon and
Tracy Morter as a protest against X Factor’s monopoly of the Christmas chart. They
encouraged people to buy “Killing in the Name,” a 17-year-old track by American rock
band Rage Against the Machine (RATM). The news media picked up on the story, causing
thousands of people to join the campaign; the number of fans on the RATM Facebook
page exceeded 800,000 (more than Google, Pepsi, or Wal-Mart).
What is more, those fans acted. In the crucial pre-Christmas week, “Killing in the Name”
sold over 500,000 copies. While 1 million people viewed the X Factor finale and 6
9.5
million voted for McElderry, only 450,000 bought McElderry’s “The Climb.”